Conventionally, there is known superheated steam as a medium superior in transfer efficiency necessary for converting thermal energy to another type of energy such as electric energy.
In order to generate the above superheated steam, for example, there are conceivable devices and methods of using a reversible reaction represented by the following equation (18) to make externally available hot or cold energy having certain temperatures from a reactor and an evaporator-condenser. However, it is difficult in fact.CaO+H2O⇄Ca(OH)2+Q [kcal]  (18)
To address the above difficulty, JP H10-89799 A, herein referred to as Patent Document 1, discloses a chemical heat pump (CaO/Ca(OH)2 series chemical pump) in which a heat exchanger is arranged with each of the reactor and the evaporator-condenser thereby making hot heat and cold heat to be retrievable successively.
In addition, JP H09-103670 A, herein referred to as Patent Document 2, discloses, as a device for generating superheated steam, a chemical reaction heat pump device that is almost permanently usable with the use of a reversible reaction series used for a chemical reaction heat pump, that is, with the use of 2-propanol/acetone/hydrogen reaction series, but without the need of resupplying a reactant.
Specifically, the above chemical reaction heat pump uses zeolite as a reaction catalyst in the following equation (19).C3H7OH(2-propanol)+Q1 [kcal] [80-100 [° C.]] (heat waste)=C3H6O(acetone)+H2 (hydrogen)+Q2 [kcal] [120-300 [° C.]]  (19)
Furthermore, JP 2001-263952 A, herein referred to as Patent document 3 discloses, as a device for generating superheated steam, a chemical heat pump dryer capable of effectively using excess energy such as nighttime power or the like and using calcined lime and hydrated lime and the like, thereby making the stocked and stored energy retrievable at a necessary timing.
Such a chemical heat pump dryer is provided with a reactor on the high temperature side, a chemical heat pump, a dryer, a heat exchanger, and a heat supplier.
The reactor on the high temperature side internally includes a chemical reactant (CaO). Also, the chemical heat pump has a reactor on the low temperature side for supplying and receiving a gas that reacts with the chemical agent of the reactor on the high temperature side.
The dryer is connected via an air circulating flow passage to the above reactor on the high temperature side and the reactor on the low temperature side. Also, the heat exchanger is arranged at the air circulating flow passage in the reactor on the high temperature side to heat the circulating air with the heat of chemical reaction of a chemical agent and a reactant gas. Moreover, the heat supplier is arranged in the reactor on the high temperature side.
With such a configuration, the above chemical heat pump dryer stocks and stores the energy of nighttime electricity or high temperature gases supplied from the exterior as a heat amount of heat necessary for generation of chemical reactant.
Then, since the energy saved in the above chemical reactant is made retrievable when it is necessary, even if the power supply is widely varied, it is possible to dry a processed work in a uniform manner under stable conditions. It is therefore possible to provide a safe system that applies a lighter load onto the environment.
Additionally, JP S62-36898 A (pages 1, 2, FIG. 1), herein referred to as Patent document 4, discloses as a device for generating superheated steam, a submersible-floating solar power generation device provided with an anchoring member that couples a craft barge and solar cells.
In this device, the craft barge is constructed with an air supply chamber to be submersible and floatable, and the solar cells are arranged at the craft barge. Furthermore, the anchoring member is coupled to a base substance at the sea bottom movably in a vertical direction and in a floatable manner.
Meanwhile, Kousuke AIUCHI “sunlight collecting system development—trial operation of a sensor controlling heliostat” The Institute of Applied Energy, Journal Applied Energy Engineering Vol. 26, No. 2 (2003. 7), p. 70, referred to as Non-Patent Document 1, describes a method of collecting sunlight with a reflecting mirror to make high temperature available for solar heat power generation.
Non-Patent Document 1 further describes that there was a Sun Shine Project in Japan as a similar solar heat power generation method, but it has not been put into practical use due to disadvantage in the sunshine condition or the like, whereas in the US, commercial plants are put to practical use.
Non-Patent Document 1 also describes that the power generation with the use of solar heat power generation having a tower configuration is expected because of the success of Solar Two (US, California, 10 MW) using a heliostat of flat mirror configuration.
In the implemented examples in the US and Japan, a method is employed in such a manner that the sunlight collected by lots of minors dissolves the molten salt that is a heat catalyst in a melting furnace installed on the top portion of a tower being several tens of meters high from the ground, and high-temperature steam is generated by high-pressure water introduced thereinto.
In this method, since the dissolved temperature of the molten salt is substantially fixed, the advantage of making high-temperature and high-pressure vapor easily available is utilized.
“Sunshine Project Outcome Report brief Overview” 1984 Agency of Industrial Science and Technology, p. 1-p. 106, referred to herein as Non-Patent Document 2, describes the contents of experiments and researches in relation to the solar heat power generation of a tower type light collection method, installed in Nio-cho, Mitoyo City, Kagawa Prefecture, Japan.
In the above experiments and researches, it is possible to obtain the power generation output of 2 MW, by use of steam of 12 atmosphere pressure (1.2 MP) at 300° C., under the conditions of turbine back-pressure 700 mHg (0.092 MP) and turbine shaft rotation frequency 7870 rpm.